How to protect your scalp during a school outbreak of head lice

Head lice are pesky insects that make their home in human hair, causing itchiness.

UNDERSTANDING HEAD LICE AND NITS
Head lice are small, wingless creatures that feed on blood from the scalp. Nits, on the other hand, are the eggs of head lice, either unhatched (brown-black) or hatched (white).

These insects don’t jump or fly, spreading only through close contact such as sharing hats, combs, or being close to someone with lice. They’re common among children and spread easily in households, schools and childcare settings.

THE LIFE CYCLE OF HEAD LICE
Professional head lice remover Jessi Brodie from The Nit Nurse said head lice usually live for about 10-14 days.

“A female lice will lay about 10 eggs per day for the next seven days, then she will probably die after a little while, but those eggs that she has laid will hatch within the next seven days,” Ms Brodie said.

Most people don’t realise they have head lice until about three weeks after the first lice has crawled onto their scalp.

“They suck your blood, which is how they feed and live, so that’s why they don’t like to come off your scalp – if they don’t have the blood supply there they can’t survive and they’ll die,” she said.

SYMPTOMS OF HEAD LICE
All that biting causes irritation to your scalp. The telltale sign of a head lice infestation is persistent* itching behind the ears and on the neck. Look for tiny oval-shaped nits close to the scalp and occasionally you could even spot live lice rapidly moving in the hair.

It is very important to treat head lice as soon as you notice them.

Ms Brodie said the worst case of head lice she ever treated was the hair of a 21-year-old woman who had lice for five years but had never treated it.

“It looked like someone had poured a whole bucket of sand over her hair,” she said. “She had black hair but her hair looked white with the amount of eggs that were in her hair. It took two full days to get through her hair.”

HOW DO YOU TREAT HEAD LICE?
There are a few ways to treat head lice:

Anti-lice products: Available without a prescription, lotions, liquids, or creams are effective. Parents and guardians should follow instructions carefully, and if the lice don’t die, they could try a product with a different active ingredient.

Wet-combing treatment: This involves combing wet hair with a fine-tooth comb and conditioner. These special combs can pull, which hurts, so it’s best to get an adult to do this for you. They should then apply plenty of conditioner, leave it for 15 minutes, then comb thoroughly*. They’ll need to repeat the whole process every 2-3 days for two weeks until no eggs or lice are found.

Physical treatment: Depending on where you live, there may be non-chemical options offered by professional head lice removal companies.

Ms Brodie said her company uses a product called the AirAlle device, which uses nothing but warm air to kill lice and their eggs by dehydrating* them.

WHEN TO SEE A DOCTOR
If at-home treatments don’t work to remove head lice, or if you experience severe itching that affects sleep, or develop sores on the scalp, your parents may decide it’s best to see a doctor.

DEALING WITH REPEAT CASES
Head lice can sometimes be hard to get rid of, especially if treatments fail at first. Your mum and dad may have to try a few different products or treatments and keep going with regular wet-combing before you get rid of them once and for all.

If someone in your family gets head lice more than three times a year, it’s worth having your parents speak with your doctor to get professional advice.

HOW TO PREVENT HEAD LICE
Myths about nits are part of childhood – but it really does help to keep long hair pulled back at school, since lice spread by crawling from one head to another. Make sure you avoid touching heads with other people and don’t share hair brushes or hats.

“It doesn’t matter who or what type of hair you have, you can get head lice,” Ms Brodie said. “When you have shorter hair, it’s harder to have it tied up, so it’s easier to catch head lice, whereas when you have longer hair, you can tie it up.”

It’s very common for teenage girls to get head lice, since they have the most head-to-head contact through activities like watching phones together, she added. Families are also prone to outbreaks since they hug each other a lot.

CAN I STILL GO TO SCHOOL?
The states and territories have different rules around whether you can attend school with head lice.

NSW – NSW Health does not recommend staying home from school if you have head lice. If a child is found to have lice, a note will be sent out to all parents asking they check their kids’ hair since there is likely to be an outbreak.

VIC – A child found to have head lice at school will be sent home with a note at the end of the school day advising their parents or carers that they require treatment. They can return to school the day after treatment has begun.

SA – A child with head lice does not need to be sent home immediately but should begin treatment the day they are discovered and can return to school the next day.

QLD – Students with head lice are not kept away from school but parents are allowed to take their kids out of school in order to treat the lice.

WA – Students with head lice may be asked to stay home until treatment has begun. They will then be allowed to return to school once all live head lice have been removed.

TAS – If a student has head lice, the school must be notified. The student must then be treated and can return to school after treatment has begun.

ACT – A student found to have head lice must be picked up early from school for treatment and the parents of all students in the class must be told there is a possible outbreak.

NT – Students with head lice are allowed to stay at school and a letter is sent home to their parents or carers asking they check for lice and begin treatment if necessary. The parents then have to let the school know if treatment has begun. Notes are sent home to the parents of the class asking them to check for head lice.

Information on head lice in this article has been sourced from Raising Children Network, NSW Health, SA Health and the Department of Education from each state and territory.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• persistent: long-lasting, not ending
• thoroughly: very carefully and paying very close attention
• dehydrating: sucking the moisture from them

EXTRA READING
Aussie bloodsucker series: fleas
Aussie bloodsucker series: ticks
Blood-sucking evolution of mozzies

QUICK QUIZ
1. Why are teenage girls more prone to head lice outbreaks?
2. What are nits and how are they different to head lice?
3. How can you prevent being bitten by head lice?
4. What is the wet-combing method?
5. How long do head lice usually live for?

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CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Design a lice house!
Design a lice house. This is a specially designed place where you could keep pet lice – not on any humans or animals at all. How would you design artificial ways for lice to feed and live?

Time: allow at least 45 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science, Design and Technology

2. Extension
What do you think would be the most dangerous bloodsucking insect for humans? Write down and brainstorm as many insects as you can think of and why they are so dangerous. Then, use your research skills to see if you were right!

Time: allow at least 45 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science

VCOP ACTIVITY
BAB it!
Show you have read and understood the article by writing three sentences using the connectives “because’’, “and”, and “but” (BAB). Your sentences can share different facts or opinions, or the same ones but written about in different ways.